


Homecoming

by Phoenix_Down



Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: #ArdynIsAHero, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Ardyn was the King of Light, Chill XV, Friends to Lovers, Gladio isn't on good enough terms with his exes, Ignis gets unwanted help from his exes, Lucis won the war thirty years ago, M/M, Mentions of past HighSpecs, Mentions of past RavNis (Fleurentia), Mutual Pining, No StarScourge though, Regis is literally King of Eos, Slow Burn, Unresolved Sexual Tension, and defeated the scourge, and her teeny bopper magazines, back to this story though, because reasons, but actually ends up taking their advice, but i figured it out, but let's the others have their own government, finding a reason for Prompto to exist was hard, it's a commonwealth relationship, so gets advice from a teenage girl, still got the crystal and all the magic that goes with it
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-12-10
Updated: 2017-12-10
Packaged: 2019-02-12 14:04:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,636
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12960933
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Phoenix_Down/pseuds/Phoenix_Down
Summary: When Ignis was ten, he moved to Gralea to live with his uncle. Now, twelve years later, he's seeing his old childhood friends for the first time since his departure. Hoping that they can just pick everything up from where they left off, things get complicated when he starts to have romantic feelings toward one of his oldest friends. Feelings that are mutual with the other party.Knowing that there's no point in pursuing a relationship when he's heading back to Gralea at the end of his holiday, they try to remain as platonic as they can despite the emotions running through them. Help and advice come from the most unlikely of sources and Ignis and Gladio have big decisions to make.





	Homecoming

**Author's Note:**

> Hello again!! I'm back with more Gladnis feels - hopefully, ha-ha - and because I am unable to leave things unexplained I have a whole backstory to this AU/CD I've just created, majority of which is in the tags lol. This was meant to be a cute little thing that evolved(due to again my inability to create a story without explaining things) into something bigger than my last Gladnis project, but I really happy with the way it turned out, I hope you are too!
> 
> Special shoutout to HorologiumParadox for working with me on this, being my beta and just being awesome!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When Ignis Scientia was ten he left Insomnia to live with his Uncle in Gralea, now twelve years later he's back in Lucis for the prince's twentieth birthday. Gladiolus Amicita, the Prince's shield and oldest friend to Ignis has gone to the airport to pick him up.

#  **~Prologue~**

_ They watched as the kids played in the grounds below, oblivious to the tension and hushed tones around them. The kids were happy despite the occasion, as carefree as only kids could be and no one had the heart to stop them. It was a simple game, one typically played in a swimming pool, but children don't exactly care for rules and so made them up as they went. A person, the chaser, was in the middle, blindfolded, arms outstretched as they fumbled around. The others hid and dodged out of the way of the arms, trying not to get caught. The chaser, in this case, a ten-year-old young boy with sandy blonde hair named Ignis,  had his glasses over the top of the blindfold, something the eldest of the three had done to make the youngest laugh. It had worked, and every time Ignis turned to walk blindly in the direction of where he hoped someone was hiding, there would be a snort of laughter and a quick change of positions. _

_ "You're going to be breaking a lot of hearts, Gaius," the king commented as they watched Gladiolus push the prince's wheelchair out of the way of Ignis' outstretched hands, their laughter floating up to the third-floor balcony where they watched. _

_ "It'll be character building," Ignis' uncle said with a passive expression. _

_ "He can stay here, it's no trouble," the king tried again, determined to change his friend's mind about moving Ignis halfway across the continent. _

_ "You have Eos and Noctis to look after, I cannot allow Ignis to burden you further…" _

_ "Burden? Ignis is not a burden, Gaius," Clarus admonished, turning his head slightly so he could look at the advisor fully. "Between the three of us…" _

_ "As much as I protest at the thought of being dragged into extra babysitting duties," Cor said, interrupting the shield with a smile. "I agree with Clarus. Ignis is very mature for his age. Having him around to help Noctis recover would be a blessing more than a burden." _

_ Gaius just shook his head and pushed away from the balcony. He turned, not giving his friends the eye contact they deserved. "I'm sorry, I have already made up my mind. Now if you’ll excuse me, your Majesty, my Lord Amicitia, Marshal, we have a flight to catch," he turned back towards them only to bow formally before his exit. _

_ Regis sighed and turned to watch the boys again. Another member had joined the fray: a young girl, no older than three, sitting on Noctis' lap and squealing in delight whenever her brother pushed them over a bump or turned them too hard. _

_ "The future of Eos," Cor muttered as they spotted Gaius walking across the grounds towards the happy group. _

_ "Ignis," he called. "Say goodbye, it's time to go." _

_ The air shifted dramatically. Iris slipped off Noctis' lap and scurried round to her brother, who picked her up and placed her on his hips. Noctis scowled and Ignis removed his blindfold, wincing as his glasses fell to the floor. _

_ "Must you go?" the prince whined as Ignis placed his glasses on his face and crouched down next to the chair. _

_ "I'll write to you. It'll be a good excuse for you to work on your penmanship," Noctis snorted, but nodded and allowed Ignis to ruffle his hair. _

_ He stood up and turned to Gladiolus and Iris. "Look after your brother," he said, and Iris nodded, wriggling to be let down. She stood proudly and clasped a fist to her heart before bowing like she'd seen her father and brother do. Ignis chuckled and the little girl launched herself at him, grabbing onto his leg. He crouched down to hug her and whispered something that the trio on the balcony couldn't quite catch. Iris nodded before running off towards the group of nannies sitting to one side. _

_ "Don't be a stranger," Gladiolus growled, voice lower than usual. _

_ "Niflheim is an awfully long way away," Ignis reminded him. "But I'll try." They hugged then, and there was no mistaking the crack in Gladiolus’ voice as he said what had to be said: _

_ "I'll miss you." _

_ "Ignis," his uncle warned, hand outstretched, and Ignis nodded. He placed a hand on Noctis' shoulder, smiled serenely at Gladiolus and looked up at the balcony before placing a fist on his heart and bowing deeply. _

_ Regis smiled and raised a hand in farewell, Clarus nodded, Cor bowed his head in return and Ignis grasped his uncle's hand. _

_ Noctis sobbed quietly as they walked away and Ignis turned his head slightly, tears at the corner of his eyes. His hand shook as he waved before the two of them disappeared from sight. _

#  **~Twelve Years Later~**

_ " _ Now remember," Gladio warned as they headed through the airport’s arrivals gate. "Not a word about Noctis."

Iris nodded as they walked, the sign she and Prompto had spent the last three days making tucked firmly under her arm. "What's he like?" she asked, and Gladio could tell she was nervous.

It had been twelve years since they had last seen each other, twelve years since Ignis had gone with his uncle to Niflheim and not come back. They'd kept in contact over the years through letters, but as they grew older, the weekly letters turned to monthly emails, which in turn changed to text messages for birthdays and holidays. No one was to blame; they'd just drifted apart. They'd tried many times to meet up and arrange video chats, but with time differences and school, it had just been impossible.

Noctis had been the one to finally convince him to come home. His twentieth birthday coincided with Ignis' graduation from the University of Gralea and, as a graduation gift, Noctis had bought a plane ticket for their old friend. It took some time - he'd already been offered a job and was due to start it after graduation -, but by pulling a few strings, Noctis won and Ignis was coming home, even if it only for three weeks.

Gladiolus stopped at the arrivals board, checking the time against the flight tracker app on his phone. Ignis' plane was landing now, so he estimated it would be another 30 minutes to an hour before his friend would finally walk through the gate. He steered his sister over to the Mooglebucks in the corner and gave her the money needed for drinks for them both.

"You haven't answered my question," Iris prodded once she'd returned, two cups in her hands -- a mocha for her and a Galahdian Black for Gladio.

"What question?"

"What's Ignis like? What does he even look like?"

They sat down at a high table with bar stools so they could see the arrivals board and the main door. It was quiet then, the previous passengers from Altissia already through. "What do you remember?" he asked her, and Iris sipped her mocha thoughtfully.

"Not much. He wore glasses, right?" Gladio nodded. "I remember once you two were having a sleepover at our place," her nose wrinkled as she tried to remember what had happened. "You had managed to convince dad to let you camp outside, but your tent collapsed? I only remember being sent outside to wake you both up and seeing that the tent was all in a heap and I thought you'd been kidnapped or something, but you were both in your room fast asleep in your bed."

They both chuckled at the memory, Gladio remembering it a little more clearly than Iris. They'd been telling scary stories, but once the wind had picked up and a leaf had fallen on the tent and scared them, they’d decided to sleep inside instead. The tent collapsing had happened when, in a hurry to get inside, Ignis had tripped over a tent peg and sent the whole thing tumbling down, scaring them both even more.

"Do you think he's changed much? How tall do you think he is now? What do you think he's wearing?" The questions were endless, even after they'd finished their coffees and made their way over to the barrier to wait.

"He'll be older," he teased. "So yes, he will have changed. He won't be as tall as me - at least I hope not - and he'll be wearing clothes."

"Gladdy," Iris moaned, hitting him on the arm. "Don't you start with the dad jokes as well."

He just smiled as the first passengers started to walk through the doors. The arrivals board announced that they had flown in from Gralea. This was Ignis’ flight.

"Get your sign ready," he muttered, and Iris flipped it happily, proudly showing it off to everyone who entered. To say it was a simple sign was an understatement. Prompto, Noctis' friend, had some stock photos of Insomnia on his hard drive, photos he'd taken to fill out his portfolio for college, so they had created a collage of photos around the outside of all the famous landmarks in Insomnia. In the middle, in Iris' cursive bubble writing, were the words " _ Welcome home Ignis!!"  _  in a heart-shaped cloud. Outside of the cloud and filling in all available space were signatures and Gladio wondered if half the people who signed it even knew who Ignis was.

"Do you think that's him?" Iris whispered as a young man with red hair and headphones around his neck walked through, wearing a hiker’s backpack on his back.

"His hair's a dirty blonde, one could even say light brown," Gladio said, scanning the faces of everyone who walked in.

"Dirty blonde/brown," Iris muttered as she went back to watching everyone who came in. Whenever someone who fitted the description entered, she held the sign up a little higher to emphasize who they were looking for. Soon, the crowd trickled down to one or two people. A little worried, Gladio stepped away from the barrier to call Noctis.

"Either there's someone else named Ignis or you're waiting for me." a soft voice came from behind him and he heard Iris gasp. Gladio hung up before his phone connected and turned around to face the newcomer. The man was tall and looked older than Gladio expected. Ignis was supposed to be 22, less than a year younger than he was, but this man, this professional businessman standing in front of Iris, looked in his late twenties, if not passing for early thirties. His hair was coiffed up and away from his face, glasses perched on the edge of his nose, masking two beautiful green eyes. Gladio felt his heart skip a beat; this man was gorgeous.

"Ignis?" Iris squealed happily, ducking under the barrier to give him a hug when he gave a small nod. Ignis chuckled and returned the hug, before ruffling her hair. "Gladdy!" she called, turning and seeing her brother nearby, watching them. "I found him!"

Ignis' eyes rose to meet Gladio’s and he couldn't help but blush. Just staring into the man's eyes made him feel like he was falling. Ignis smiled and Gladio melted.

"Gladiolus, it's been a while," Ignis said with a nod of his head.

Gladio scratched the back of his neck nervously. "Yeah," he chuckled, still staring at his old friend. Twelve years had made a big change. He'd always spoken with a received pronunciation, so that wasn't different. What was different was the way he carried himself, straight back, almost as if he was royalty. He was wearing a pair of beige tailored trousers and an off-white shirt with the top button undone. Tucked under his arm was a copy of the Financial Times and a matching beige jacket.

"How was your flight?" Iris asked, casting a strange look at her brother, before drawing Ignis' attention to herself. Gladio could've kicked himself; he was standing here, staring at an old friend, and all he'd said was  _ yeah. _ He'd imagined it all, there might have been a hug or at least a high-five. They could've just said hi and it would have been like old times like he'd never left. What he didn't expect was for Ignis to walk in like he'd done and just cause Gladio’s hormones to skyrocket.

"Long, but not uncomfortable. His Highness wasn't frugal when it came to booking my seat," he glanced up at Gladio again with another soft smile. This alone kicked Gladio into gear.

"Yeah, Noct's always got your interests at heart."

"Indeed," he started walking towards the exit and the Amicitias followed. The barrier opened up and all three of them lined up, Ignis in the middle, Iris on his right and Gladio on his left.

"Do you have everything?" he glanced down at Ignis' luggage, a four-wheeled suitcase and a messenger bag strapped over his chest, and Ignis nodded.  "The car’s just outside, do you… er... want me to take your suitcase?" Gladio inwardly groaned in frustration,  _ why was this so hard? _

"That would be lovely, Gladiolus, thank you. It's a bit heavy, it wasn't easy packing for three weeks and still travel light."

"Oh, I bet!" Iris piped up. "I'm so envious of dad and Gladdy whenever we go on holiday. They always have fewer clothes than I do, but I have specific shoes that match specific items, you know? And then there's always smart casual, versus semi-formal and a ball gown which is a different bag entirely…"

Ignis relinquished his suitcase to Gladio, who took it happily. It was a little heavy, but nothing he couldn't handle. Iris chatted amicably, Ignis offering words of wisdom as Gladio lead them outside into the parking garage. He couldn't help but feel a pang of jealousy at how well Iris was getting on with Ignis. She'd been three when he'd left and barely knew him, but now they were chatting like old friends. This is how he'd imagined it for them.

His car wasn't too far away and after feeding the machine some money to validate his parking, he placed Ignis' case in the boot and sat down in the front. Both Iris and Ignis had decided to sit in the back, so, feeling a little left out, he started the engine and followed the signs for the exit.

"His Majesty has planned dinner at seven," Iris was saying. "So you have a couple of hours to just chill or sleep."

"Oh, I can’t sleep," Ignis said, despite the fact he'd stifled a yawn not three minutes earlier. “We're five hours ahead of Gralea; if I don't at least try and keep to a regular sleep pattern, jet lag will ruin me," he chuckled, which turned into another yawn.

"How long was the flight?" Gladio asked casually, surprising himself at how calm and collected he managed to sound. It was also the longest thing he'd said to his old friend since he'd laid eyes on him.

"Ten hours," came the reply, and Gladio whistled. "I left at 10 p.m., Gralean time…"

"So 3 a.m. on our time?"

"Yes. However, I, of course, woke up at a reasonable time yesterday morning, so I've been up for over twenty-four hours. If I sleep now, I won't want to sleep tonight, which will thrust me into a loop of irregular sleeping, and I very much want to enjoy my time here instead of spending it sleeping all day and staying awake at night."

"Well, we can keep you awake, right, Gladdy?"

"Yes, please do. If I start snoring, you have my permission to simply prod me awake."

Iris giggled and Gladio risked a chance to look back at Ignis through the rearview mirror. Their eyes locked and a smile was exchanged in thanks before Gladio turned his attention back on the road.

"So how is Noctis? He didn't want to join the welcoming committee?"

"Nah, he's too busy planning…" Gladio sent his sister a warning glare through the mirror, which she thankfully caught and changed what she was saying. "...stuff. He's planning stuff with Prompto, the photographer who helped make your sign."

"Prompto," Ignis frowned as if he was trying to remember if he'd ever been told about this mysterious Prompto.

"Noct's best friend, met in high school," Gladio supplied, happy that the subject was moving away from the surprise Noctis had planned.

"Ah yes. It was around that time that Noctis stopped sending me letters. I have no qualms about him as he no doubt did the world of good for Noctis, but I would very much like to meet him."

"I think it would be harder to avoid him, to be honest," Iris giggled. "He and Noct are literally attached at the seams."

Gladio risked a glanced towards the back again, masking it with checking his mirrors before exiting the highway. He caught Ignis’ eyes, green eyes filled with curiosity.  _ I'll explain later, _ he thought hard, trying to convey his intention with his gaze alone. Ignis nodded as if he understood and asked Iris how her studies were going. There actually wasn't much to tell, only that Prompto had played a huge factor in Noctis’ recovery, as Ignis would soon find out.

It was almost 3 p.m. by the time Gladio pulled into the Citadel's underground parking. Ignis had napped a little bit, Iris only poking him awake as they passed through the west gate.

"I'd love to stay and chat, Ignis, but I have a piano lesson in fifteen minutes. I'll be at dinner, though, okay?" Iris said as she hopped out of the car. She bounced around to the other side and gave Ignis a hug before running towards the elevators. "I'm really glad you’re back!" she called, jabbing the button on the elevator and waving until the door closed.

Ignis chuckled. "She's certainly changed, being all grown up now," he commented, retrieving his messenger bag and jacket from the footwell as Gladio lifted his suitcase out of the boot.

"Still as annoying as she was twelve years ago. She's just got more vocabulary and an attitude that makes it worse," Gladio responded with a smile, making the two friends chuckle.

It was now, with the comfortable silence the two fell in as they made their way over to the elevators, that did Gladio realised they were alone.

"How've you been?" Gladio asked at the same time Ignis said: "You look good."

They both blushed and turned slightly, Gladio watching in the reflection of the wooden finish of the elevator as Ignis played with the zip on his messenger bag.

He switched the suitcase to his other hand. "You look great, good I mean. Really good… ah, the suit… suits you," he finished lamely and winced. Ignis looked up and smiled.

"Was that a pun?" he asked, eyes shining.

"Not a very good one," Gladio muttered.

"On the contrary, it  _ suit _ ed the occasion perfectly."

Gladio groaned and Ignis laughed. The sound was like music to Gladio's ears and he very much wanted to hear it again.

The elevator ride, short as it was, soon deposited them in the main lobby of the Citadel. This was where Noctis had planned to meet them and, as they walked towards a row of couches tucked off to one side, the taller saw a familiar mop of blonde hair studying one of the wall directories near the security desk. The blonde waved and brought his phone out of his pocket to hold it to his ear. Everything was falling nicely into place, Gladio just hoped it went better than the actual meeting.

"Noct asked if we could meet here. He wanted to be the one to show you where you'll be staying," Gladio said, placing Ignis' suitcase against the back of one of the couches.

"Sounds reasonable," Ignis replied, taking the respite to unshoulder his messenger bag and place it on the chair. "Iris said dinner was at seven?" he queried and Gladio nodded. Now that the ice had been broken with their terrible puns, he felt a little more at ease talking to his old friend. There was still the fact that he hadn't anticipated how amazing Ignis would look and the little distractions that came with it, but he supposed it would get better with time.

"Just a small gathering. Myself, dad and Iris; Noct and the King with Prompto and Cor." He smiled as Ignis stifled another yawn. "Sure you don't want to take a quick nap?"

"I'm sure. I just need something to distract me." Gladio could think of plenty of things they could do that would be distracting, but all of them were inappropriate, considering they'd only been reunited for a couple of hours.

Instead, he said, "We could go for a drive, see if you remember anything?"

Out of the corner of his eyes, he could see Prompto, still over by the directory, greet a young man of similar age. They both glanced over at Gladio and Ignis before starting to work their way over.  _ This was it _ Gladio thought gleefully.  _ Time for the reveal. _

"A drive would be nice. I heard the national archives got renovated, I'd love to see them if you could get access."

"I don't know about access," Gladio grinned slyly. "Permission from that can only come from a member of the royal family."

At that moment, two hands fell into place over Ignis' eyes, covering them entirely. He jumped slightly, startled as a voice spoke in his ear.

"Guess who!"

"Noct?" Ignis turned around slowly, and Gladio stepped back to give them room. Ignis' face was a picture as he turned around to see Noctis standing behind him, hands now on his hip as he stood tapping his foot against the floor. He grinned sheepishly and waved. "But how… when… you're walking?" Gladio hadn't pegged Ignis as one who could be speechless.

"Heh. Hey, Specs. Miss me?"

**Author's Note:**

> Comments are always welcomed. Thanks for reading!


End file.
